A Framework Prototype for Multithreaded Implementation Over Micro-Controllers

Multithreading is pervasive in embedded system applications development. The applications requirements are becoming more rigorous, demanding the execution of concurrent tasks that must also take into account modularity and flexibility. An important part of the operating systems development concerns the implementation of scheduling algorithms. In an embedded system context, it is essential to consider that the scheduling algorithm heavily influences application behavior. Due to restricted and finite hardware resources, it is important to evaluate the use of flexible algorithms to guarantee efficiency. Currently, projects for embedded operating systems do exist for microcontrollers’ devices that implement scheduling algorithms, however, the developer cannot change or add new scheduling policies without implementing kernel tweaks and modifications. The alternatives are not flexible when choosing the scheduling algorithm according to the application needs. This imposes restrictions to many systems, forcing them to run specific static scheduling algorithms because no other options are available. The objective of this work concerns the design and development of a framework that implements a microkernel with a modular scheduler unit, allowing the execution of tailored algorithms according to the application profile. The idea is to provide a flexible platform to conveniently select the most appropriated algorithm. We have employed low capacity hardware to implement multithreading patterns corresponding to sets of concurrent tasks, demonstrating the strengths of adopting our approach. Our results show that the use of modern techniques that combine modularity, multithreading, and scheduling methods for embedded systems yield best executions when compared to its sequential counterparts.